Environment Protection Act 1970 STATE ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION POLICY (WATERS OF VICTORIA) 23/2/1988, No. S13, Gazette 26/2/1988 As varied: 6/2/1990 No. G12, Gazette 21 March 1990 No. S122, Gazette 22/10/1996: Schedule F5 (Waters of the Latrobe and Thompson River Basins and the Merriman Creek Catchment) No. S101, Gazette 27/8/1997: Schedule F6 (Waters of the Port Phillip Bay) No. S89, Gazette 22/6/1999: Schedule F7 (Waters of the Yarra Catchment) No. S192, Gazette 2/11/2001: Schedule F8 (Waters of Western Port and Catchment) 3/6/2003, No. S107, Gazette 4/6/2003 5/10/2004. No. S210, Gazette 5/10/2004 This is not an Authorised version of the Policy. This document provides a consolidated version of the State Environment Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria) and subsequent Policy variations (referenced above). Preamble Victoria’s surface water environments form the basis of life and prosperity. Healthy water environments provide food and shelter for aquatic plants and animals, enable simple pleasures such as swimming and fishing and provide necessities such as water for drinking, agriculture and industry. They also enable continued indigenous and non-indigenous cultural and spiritual practices associated with water. Without healthy water environments, these uses and values that Victorians want, are at risk. To secure a sustainable future for Victorians, we need to protect and rehabilitate the aquatic habitats of our rivers, lakes, wetlands, estuaries, bays and oceans, and the social and economic values they support. To do so, we need to continuously reduce our impact on surface water environments, by using land and water resources within their capabilities, and by avoiding and re-using wastes, particularly those generated from everyday activities. This Policy provides a legal framework for State and local government agencies, businesses and communities to work together to protect and rehabilitate Victoria’s surface water environments. Importantly, it supports Victoria’s catchment and coastal management processes and associated community decision-making they support. This support is essential, as we all play a direct role in protecting our environment for our future. PART I: PRELIMINARY 1. Title This Policy may be cited as the State environment protection policy (Waters of Victoria) and is referred to below as ‘the Policy’. 2. Context The Policy: (1) applies to all businesses, non-government agencies, community groups, individuals and State and local government agencies that use, plan, manage or derive benefit from Victoria’s surface waters; (2) applies to each person responsible for making legal decisions in relation to Victoria’s surface waters; and (3) is an instrument of the Environment Protection Act 1970, and is administered by the Environment Protection Authority, which is responsible for ensuring its overall implementation. 3. Definitions In the Policy, unless inconsistent with the context or subject matter, or with the definitions of the Environment Protection Act 1970: “Aquatic ecosystem” means the community of organisms living within or immediately adjacent to water (including riparian and foreshore zones). “Artificial” means an asset such as a waste treatment system, wetland, channel or drain that has been constructed for a specific purpose. An artificial asset does not include an asset that has resulted from the modification of surface water environments. “Audit” means the definition of ‘environmental audit’ in the Environment Protection Act 1970. “Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality” (2000) means the guidelines developed by the Australian and New Zealand Environment Conservation Council and the Agricultural and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand. “Background level” means the level of an indicator in surface waters or their aquatic ecosystem, outside the influence of any waste containing a measurable level of that indicator. “Best practice” means the best combination of techniques, methods, processes or technology used in an industry sector or activity that demonstrably minimises the environmental impact of that industry sector or activity. “Beneficial use” means a use of the environment which is conducive to public benefit, welfare, safety, health or aesthetic enjoyment and which requires protection from the effects of waste discharges. A full definition is listed in the Environment Protection Act 1970. “Floodplain” means an area of land inundated with an average flood recurrence interval of one hundred years. “Indicator” means a measurement that provides information on the environmental quality of an environment. “Intensive agricultural industry” means an operation where animals are concentrated for the purpose of agricultural production (including piggeries, poultry farms, feedlots and feedpads, fish farms and aquaculture, milking sheds and associated stock yards and laneways), and intensive horticultural operations (including plant nurseries and market gardens). “Largely un-modified ecosystem” means an aquatic ecosystem where human activity has had a minimal impact and consequently it is largely undisturbed. “Highly modified ecosystem” means an aquatic ecosystem which has been significantly disturbed as a result of human activity. “Minimise” means the adoption of measures (including those listed in the waste hierarchy), which reduce to the maximum extent practicable the impact of an activity or waste on beneficial uses. "Mixing zone" means an area contiguous to a licensed waste discharge point and specified in that licence, where the receiving environmental quality objectives otherwise applicable under the Policy do not apply to certain indicators as specified in the licence. This means that some or all beneficial uses may not be protected in the mixing zone. “Objective” means the concentration or level of an indicator that describes the environmental quality required to protect designated beneficial uses. “Protection agency” means the definition of ‘protection agency’ in the Environment Protection Act 1970. “Regional catchment strategy” means the definition of ‘regional catchment strategy’ in the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 and includes Government endorsed sub-strategies and plans. “Riparian” means inhabiting or situated on a river or stream bank or where vegetation interacts with surface waters. “Slightly to moderately modified ecosystem” means an aquatic ecosystem where human activity has caused a measurable disturbance; “Surface water” means the definition of ‘water’ in the Environment Protection Act 1970. For the purposes of this Policy, surface waters excludes groundwaters and waters within tanks, artificial waste treatment systems, reticulated water supply distribution systems, off-stream private dams, and piped and underground drains. “Waste” means the definition of ‘waste’ in the Environment Protection Act 1970. 4. Contents The Policy is divided into parts as follows: PART I - PRELIMINARY 1. Title 2. Context 3. Definitions 4. Contents PART II - PURPOSE, PRINCIPLES AND INTENT 5. Policy purpose 6. Policy principles 7. Policy intent PART III - POLICY AREA 8. Policy area 9. Segments PART IV – BENEFICIAL USES 10. Beneficial uses PART V - ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY OBJECTIVES AND INDICATORS 11. Environmental quality objectives and indicators PART VI - ATTAINMENT PROGRAM 12. Practicability KEY RESPONSIBILITIES FOR IMPLEMENTING THE POLICY 13. General responsibilities for implementing the Policy 14. Environment Protection Authority 15. Catchment management authorities 16. Regional coastal boards 17. Municipal councils 18. Water authorities 19. Department of Sustainability and Environment 20. Department of Primary Industries 21. Parks Victoria 22. Industry sectors 23. Communities GUIDANCE 24. Regional target setting 25. Guidance on environmental management 26. Off-set measures WASTE AND WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT 27. Management of discharges to surface waters 28. New wastewater discharges 29. Existing wastewater discharges 30. Mixing zones 31. Management of wastewater re-use and recycling 32. On-site domestic wastewater management 33. Sewerage planning 34. Connection to sewerage 35. Sewerage management 36. Saline discharges 37. Chemical management 38. Spills, illegal discharges and dumping of waste 39. Animal wastes WATER MANAGEMENT 40. Water conservation 41. Water allocations and environmental flows 42. Releases from water storages 43. Surface water management and works 44. Dredging and desilting management 45. Groundwater management 46. Urban stormwater 47. Ports, marinas and vessels 48. Aquaculture activities 49. Aquatic pests CATCHMENT MANAGEMENT 50. Agricultural activities 51. Irrigation channels and drains 52. Intensive agricultural industries 53. Vegetation protection and rehabilitation 54. Recreational activities 55. Forestry activities 56. Construction activities 57. Roads 58. Extractive industries PART VII - ANNEXES PART VIII – SCHEDULES Schedule A – Environmental quality objectives and indicators Schedule B – Areas of high conservation value PART II: POLICY PURPOSE, PRINCIPLES AND INTENT 5. Policy purpose The purpose of the Policy is to help achieve sustainable surface waters by: (1) setting out the environmental values and beneficial uses of water that Victorians want, and the environmental quality required to protect them; and (2) setting, within a 10 year timeframe, goals for protection agencies, businesses and communities and means by which they can be met. 6. Policy principles The following principles form the basis of the Policy and